Ms. Tara Christie reports

BANYAN ANNOUNCES CLOSING $1.5 M FIRST TRANCHE OF FINANCING

Subject to approval by the TSX Venture Exchange, Banyan Gold Corp. is closing the first tranche of $1.5-million of a total $2.5-million private placement.

The company intends to use the net proceeds from the private placement to expand its exploration activities in 2021 on its Yukon-based properties.

The first tranche includes 5,357,143 flow-through shares at 28 cents. A second tranche consisting of approximately 3,076,924 charity flow-through shares priced at 32.5 cents for gross proceeds of $1-million is expected to close on or around Dec. 29, 2020.

"With a strong treasury and a project located adjacent to mines of our two largest shareholders, Victoria Gold and Alexco Resources, we are now well positioned to strategically advance this project to the next level in 2021 with an increase in planned exploration activities," stated Tara Christie, president and chief executive officer.

The flow-through gross proceeds received from the sale to subscribers of the charity flow-through shares and flow-through shares will be used to incur "Canadian exploration expenses" as defined in Subsection 66.1(6) of the Income Tax Act (Canada) on the company's properties in the Yukon Territory, and renounced to such subscribers effective not later than Dec. 31, 2020. Such Canadian exploration expenses will also qualify as "flow-through mining expenditures" as defined in Subsection 127(9) of the Tax Act. In connection with the closing of the private placement, the company will pay a cash finder's fee in the amount of $33,860 on the first tranche of the financing.

Certain insiders of the company participated in the private placement for $280,380, comprising 1,001,359 flow-through shares. Such participation represents a related party transaction under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 -- Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions, but the transaction is exempt from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements of MI 61-101 as neither the fair market value of the subject matter of the transaction, nor the consideration paid, exceed 25 per cent of the company's market capitalization.

Under applicable Canadian securities laws, all securities issued pursuant to the first tranche of the private placement are subject to, among other things, a statutory hold period of four months and one day. The private placement remains subject to the final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

Upcoming events

AME Roundup 2021 -- virtual presentation Jan. 21, 2021

Qualified person

Paul D. Gray, PGeo, vice-president of exploration for the company, is a "qualified person" as defined under National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the content of this news release.

COVID-19 update

Banyan has taken pro-active measures to protect the health and safety of the company's employees and communities from COVID 19 and exploration activities in 2020 have additional safety measures in place, following and exceeding all the recommendations made by the Yukon's chief medical officer.

About Banyan Gold Corp.

Banyan's primary asset, AurMac, is adjacent to Victoria Gold Corp.'s new Eagle gold mine in Canada's Yukon, which announced commercial production on July 1, 2020. The AurMac initial resource of 903,945 ounces Au was announced in May, 2020. Banyan's major strategic shareholders include Osisko Gold Royalties, Sprott Funds, Alexco Resource Corp. and Victoria Gold. Banyan is focused on gold exploration projects that have the geological potential, size of land package and proximity to infrastructure that are advantageous for a mineral project to have potential to become a mine. Its Yukon-based projects both fit this model and its objective is to gain shareholder value by advancing projects in its pipeline.

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